Saturday, September 10, 2016

Kaine’s wife steps up Clinton campaign role amid poll problems

Aug. 1, 2016: Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine listens as his wife Anne Holton speaks at a campaign office in Richmond, Va.

As Hillary Clinton's numbers take a hit in the polls, the Democratic ticket is deploying a potentially potent surrogate to the campaign trail: Anne Holton.
The wife of Clinton running mate Tim Kaine -- and daughter of a former Republican governor in the swing state of Virginia -- increasingly is stepping out on her own to stump for the Democratic presidential nominee.
She's no stranger to politics. Holton has an accomplished legal and political resume, as a former lawyer and judge, and ex-Virginia education secretary – a role she resigned from in July to focus on the campaign. In that respect, she is in a unique position to push Clinton’s education platform. She also could be used to help shore up support among women voters who may be having second thoughts about Clinton.
“Because Hillary Clinton’s favorability and trust numbers are so low – she needs help … and it’s the kind of help Bill Clinton is unable to provide,” said Matthew Dallek, an associate professor of political science at George Washington University.
The Democratic presidential nominee's popularity hit a new low among registered voters in a recent Washington Post/ABC News poll. In it, 41 percent of Americans said they have a positive view of Clinton while 56 percent have a negative view. Her popularity among women sank to 45-52 percent, practically a reversal from a month prior.
Though former President Clinton can speak to his wife’s accomplishments, it’s arguably tougher for him to present her as a relatable figure to women voters who may be on the fence.
Enter Holton.
On the stump, Holton is just as comfortable highlighting Clinton’s role as a new grandmother, sometimes receiving “awwws” from audience members, as she is focusing on the particulars of the candidate's education platform.
She recently met with students, supporters and educators at four different stops in New Hampshire. Then it was on to Roanoke, Va., Holton’s hometown, last Friday. She toured Virginia Western Community College and pushed Clinton proposals to make college tuition free for some students. She also stopped by a local campaign office for a volunteer appreciation event and made additional stops in the state on Monday, before hitting up a fundraiser with her husband in Norfolk on Friday.
On a recent stop at a Richmond campaign office, Holton gave volunteers a pep talk, The Associated Press reported.
“This has been a month — a whirlwind,” Holton said. “Tim told me on the phone this morning that ... he has been in 24 states in 30 days,” she said. “I have not. But I’ve had some fun on the trail, too. ... It is crazy and wild. Our lives have been turned topsy-turvy. But for such a great cause. And we’re thrilled to be part of it.”
Dallek said it is "a bit unusual" for the spouse of a vice presidential nominee to play such a prominent role, but said Holton "is a political factor and public expert in her own right.”
“She has a really interesting background and comes from a very political family,” Dallek said.
Holton, a popular former first lady of Virginia when Kaine was governor, also is the daughter of A. Linwood Holton, Jr., a moderate Republican who in 1970 became the first GOP governor to be elected in the state in nearly a century.
Holton’s father worked to integrate the schools in response to court-ordered desegregation, even sending a young Anne Holton to attend a public school in Richmond with a black student majority.
Though it doesn’t seem too radical today, at the time, it was groundbreaking.
“It was my first real experience of being with people who came from a much different background than mine,” she recently said during a visit to Pittsburgh. “I did learn some things about differences, but I learned a lot more about similarities.”
The Clinton campaign, which signs off on Holton's public appearances, declined an interview request from FoxNews.com.
On the Republican side, vice presidential nominee Mike Pence’s wife, Karen Pence, hasn’t been as visible as Holton but is starting to show up more on the trail.
Two weeks ago, Karen Pence, who also has an accomplished background in education, accompanied her husband on a swing through Georgia.

Karen Pence

Trump reaches out to faith voters, as candidates spar on security

Donald Trump: We will cherish, defend our Christian heritage

Donald Trump paused from another day of sparring with Hillary Clinton over national security issues Friday to reach out to faith voters, telling an audience at the Values Voters Summit that he will defend Christian values like “you’ve never seen before.”
Speaking at the gathering of conservative Christians in Washington, the Republican nominee said that political leaders have abandoned Christians, while the media mocks Christianity.
“Your values of love, charity and faith built this nation,” he told the audience. “How can it be that our media treats people of faith so poorly? One of the reasons is that our politicians have abandoned you to a large extent, and Hillary Clinton? You can forget about her.”
He promised that a Trump administration would buck that.
“A Trump administration, our Christian heritage will be cherished, protected, defended like you’ve never seen before,” he said. “Believe me.”
He also reiterated his call to repeal the so-called Johnson amendment, which prevents tax-exempt groups, such as Christian organizations and churches, from endorsing political candidates. Striking a unifying tone, Trump promised to unite America if he were elected to the White House in November.
“Imagine what our country could achieve if we worked together as one people, under one God, saluting one flag,” he said.
Trump’s remarks come after a week of back-and-forth between the campaigns on foreign policy, with just 60 days to go until the election.
Clinton called for new sanctions Friday on North Korea after it conducted its fifth nuclear test, something she called “a direct threat to the United States.” Trump meanwhile cast blame on Clinton for the North Korean situation.
“Clinton’s failed policies allowed threats to us and our allies to thrive around the world, including emboldening Iran and North Korea to accelerate their development of nuclear capabilities with impunity,” he said in a statement late Friday.
When pushed on what he would do in response to aggression from the North Koreans, the campaign said it would not reveal its plan to America’s enemies. Trump has been criticized for not outlining his plans for dealing with foreign policy challenges, especially in regard to ISIS.
"He's not going to reveal all of his plans, and he's made that very clear. And maybe someone can ask him in a debate," campaign manager Kellyanne Conway told CBS "This Morning." `
Trump also came under fire for praising Russian President Vladimir Putin in an NBC town hall Wednesday this week, and for granting an interview to Russian government-backed Russia Today on Thursday.
Clinton took aim at Trump in a short press conference Friday after meeting with national security advisers. When asked about Trump’s relationship with Putin, Clinton said it was proof that Trump was not running a serious campaign.
“It’s not a serious presidential campaign, and it is beyond one’s imagination to have a candidate for president praising a Russian autocrat like Vladimir Putin and throwing his lot in with him,” she said.
Clinton’s campaign has been using her experience and sober outlook as a key part of the campaign, and announced Friday that the number of retired generals and admirals endorsing her has grown to 110. Trump, meanwhile, has said he has the endorsement of 88 retired generals and admirals.
Trump’s running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, received his first intelligence briefing on Friday. While he did not offer specifics on what he was told, he said he and Trump would be “ready on day one.”

Krauthammer: Clinton has set the debate bar so low for Trump

'BASKET OF DEPLORABLES': Clinton says half of Trump's voters are 'racist, sexist, homophobic' at fundraiser

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton caused an uproar late Friday after telling a fundraiser audience that half of Republican nominee Donald Trump's supporters could be described as part of a "basket of deplorables."
The former secretary of state, who described her own remarks as "grossly generalistic", said Trump had bolstered people who are "racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, you name it." She did add that Trump's other supporters are frustrated by hard times and merit sympathy.
"They are just desparate for change," Clinton said. "They don't buy everything [Trump] says, but he seems to hold out some hope that their lives will be different.
Clinton was speaking at an LGBT fundraiser in New York City, where she encouraged supporters to "stage an intervention" if they have friends considering voting for the Republican nominee.
"That may be one conversion therapy I'd endorse," said Clinton, referring to a type of counseling designed to urge gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender children to change their sexual orientation. The Democratic nominee later clarified that she wants to end the practice.
Singer Barbra Streisand, who performed at the fundraiser, altered the lyrics of the Stephen Sondheim song "Send In The Clowns" to mock Trump, referring to the real estate mogul as a "sad, vulgar clown."
Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway responded to Clinton's remarks on Twitter late Friday.
Trump spokesman Jason Miller said in a statement that Clinton had "revealed her true contempt for everyday Americans" and called the remarks an "inexcusable mistake."
Clinton campaign spokesman Nick Merrill defended the candidate in tweets of his own.
"Obviously not everyone supporting Trump is part of the alt-right, but alt-right leaders are with Trump," Merrill added. "And their supporters appear to make up half his crowd when you observe the tone of his events.
The fundraiser capped a day during which Trump again attacked Clinton's credibility. He said Clinton was being "protected" during the Justice Department's investigation into her use of a private email server while secretary of state.
"She could walk right into this arena right now and shoot somebody with 20,000 people watching, right smack in the middle of the heart, and she wouldn't be prosecuted," Trump said at a rally in Pensacola, Fla.
Trump also faced criticism from within his own party for refusing to outline his plans for combating foreign policy challenges, including threats posed by ISIS. Trump said this week that he does indeed have a plan, but would convene military leaders in his first 30 days in office to craft another plan.
Trump has also faced criticism for praising Russian President Vladimir Putin during a high-profile national security forum earlier in the week, and appearing on a Russian-backed television network Thursday evening.
On Friday, Clinton said she was "disappointed" by Trump's decision to appear on RT America, saying that "every day that goes by this just becomes more and more of a reality television show. It's not a serious presidential campaign."
With several prominent Republican national security officials already concerned about Trump's national security acumen, Clinton has tried to cast herself as the better potential commander in chief. She has aggressively promoted her growing list of military endorsements from both parties.
On Friday, her campaign said the number of retired generals and admirals endorsing Clinton for president has grown to 110. Trump quickly countered by saying his list had ballooned to 120 former U.S. generals and admirals earlier in the week.
Trump's running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, received his first intelligence briefing Friday. The vice presidential nominee declined to offer any specifics since the information was classified.

Friday, September 9, 2016

FBI James Comey Cartoons

Obama administration shuts down one prison camp at Guantanamo Bay

Biden expects Gitmo to close before Obama ends presidency

The Obama administration has gotten one step closer to shuttering the Guantanamo Bay detention center, closing down a 100-cell maximum-security prison and moving to reduce the U.S. presence there.
A military official confirmed to Fox News on Thursday that the site known as Camp 5 will be closed, with parts of it turned into a medical clinic to "improve operations."
“Camp V at Joint Task Force Guantanamo has been closed as a detention facility and repurposed into another function and the detainees consolidated," spokesman Capt. John Filostrat said in a statement.
The development, first reported by The Miami Herald, is part of President Obama’s promise to close the detention center -- an effort that continues to face fierce resistance in Congress.
Camp 5 is where problematic prisoners were sent, including those who went on hunger strikes as well as war criminals. They reportedly will be "consolidated" into another section known as Camp 6.
Filostrat told the Herald the rest are in a secret site called Camp 7. This is where 15 CIA captives -- including the alleged mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks and his accused accomplices -- are being held.
Filostrat said troops started to move detainees from Camp 5 on Aug. 19 – a week after the Pentagon said it had sent 15 detainees to the United Arab Emirates as part of Obama’s plan to shrink the prison population.
The total detainee population is now at 61, and the administration plans to continue transferring out additional prisoners -- though Congress has blocked transfers to the U.S, complicating the goal of shuttering the camp by the end of Obama's presidency.
Meanwhile, the staff of nearly 2,000 U.S. troops and civilians is being cut by 400 soldiers by the end of the year, the Herald reported. They are doing this by canceling upcoming deployments.
Camp 5 was built more than a decade ago for about $17 million. Its around-the-clock security surveillance was modeled after a state prison in Bunker Hill, Ind. The site itself has had its share of headlines. Two prisoners committed suicide by hanging there in 2007 and one by drug overdose in 2012. In 2013, more than 100 detainees launched a mass hunger strike.
Obama reiterated at a news conference in Laos this week that he thinks the prison is unnecessary, costs too much and serves as a recruitment tool for terrorists.

Suspected serial rapist who allegedly tried to burn victims alive was deported 5 times, police say

AUSTIN, TEXAS - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said a man accused of serial rape in the Austin area was deported five times before his most recent arrest in August.
Nicodemo Coria-Gonzales faces six charges including aggravated sexual assault and kidnapping.
Police said Coria-Gonzalez admitted he had picked up prostitutes and beat them out of anger. He is currently being held without bond on an immigration detainer.
“There’s bad, really bad people, who want to do us real harm who are coming at us from all different directions: north, south, east and west,” said immigration specialist Thomas Esparza, Jr.
If the allegations against him are true, Nicodemo Coria-Gonzalez illegally immigrated to the United States six times and then sexually abused several women.
“If that guy came back, he came back to do us ill, but there's not that many people who are able to come back that often and that successfully. That's the kind of person that even immigration lawyers are going to say, ‘You know, he should be prosecuted,’” said Esparza.
In August, Coria-Gonzalez was arrested after a woman told police he tried to set her on fire. While investigating, officers realized he had sexually assaulted several women in a secluded area off Ferguson Lane.
Investigators also learned Coria-Gonzalez had previous charges that convinced U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deport him five times.
“Five times deported and he's still here? What did he do the first time to get himself deported? And why didn't he learn after the second or the third or the fourth time? But already five times? And he's still back? He's a determined son of a gun, but at some point the dance is over and so, unfortunately, the dance is going to be over for him and he's going to be in jail,” Esparza said.
ICE said Coria-Gonzales was previously convicted of criminal charges including three charges of driving while intoxicated.
After each conviction he was extradited to Mexico. That never kept him from illegally crossing the border back into the United States.
“Every time you commit that offense the range of punishment gets higher and higher, but that's not enough to deter some people who really want to be here no matter what. And so if the punishment doesn't deter them, I don't know what will,” said Esparza.
Coria-Gonzalez is now considered an ICE enforcement priority.
Police believe there may be more victims that are afraid to come forward. They encourage them and anyone with information about these crimes to call the Austin Police Department.

Clinton email had 'multiple' classified markings, challenging her claim to FBI

Why obstruction charge for Clinton could hinge on timing

EXCLUSIVE: New details about the emails on Hillary Clinton's personal server that contained classified markings call into question her claim to the FBI that she didn't know what the markings meant -- and even believed they represented an alphabetical listing of paragraphs.
A government source told Fox News that virtually every paragraph in one mail contained so-called portion markings used exclusively for classification purposes. These classified codes are found on the left-hand side and reflect the classification of the intelligence contained in each paragraph.
The Clinton email has one paragraph marked "C" for "confidential," which is the lowest level of classification. And the source said "multiple paragraphs (on the same email) are marked, SBU," which means "sensitive but unclassified."
Both codes are there so the reader knows what is classified intelligence.
"It's not possible, not even plausible, it's an alphabetical listing. The explanation makes no sense," the government source said, referring to Clinton's statement to the FBI in her July 2 interview.
In FBI investigation notes released Friday, agents wrote that Clinton, when asked what the “C” marking meant, “stated she did not know and could only speculate it was referencing paragraphs marked in alphabetical order."
But the source said the appearance of other classified codes on the email further undercut that claim.
A second government source who has also reviewed the FBI file said none of the handful of emails with classified markings contain "A, B or other letters" to support Clinton’s “alphabetical” answer, adding the "A, B, C..SBU does not fly."
Fox News first reported in June that at least one of the Clinton emails was marked classified, conflicting with her public statements.
In an interview with Fox's Sean Hannity, the head of Wikileaks Julian Assange also challenged Clinton's statement to the FBI.
"Hillary Clinton says she can't remember what a ‘C’ in brackets stands for. Everyone in positions of government and in Wikileaks knows it stands for classified, ‘confidential,’” Assange said. He said Wikileaks has already released thousands of cables showing Clinton’s signature with (C) next to it.
Clinton has said in the past that many of the cables carry an electronic signature and that she did not personally write or review all of them.
The FBI file also reveals that from the beginning of Hillary Clinton's term in 2009 as secretary of state, the department installed secure rooms, known as "SCIFs" for her official use at both of her residences in Washington, D.C., and in Chappaqua, N.Y.
These Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities contain secure communications equipment authorized to be used to conduct official government business including the reading of sensitive and classified materials.
Instead, Clinton chose to use a variety of 13 mobile devices like Blackberrys as well as iPads for checking emails sent to her clintonemail.com address. The FBI said none of the mobile devices could be accounted for by Clinton's attorneys.
According to the highly redacted FBI documents released Friday, Clinton told the agents "that she did not have a computer of any kind in the SCIFs in her residences." However, Clinton's statement conflicts directly with accounts from three close aides, including Huma Abedin and Justin Cooper, who told the FBI there were "personally owned desktop computers in the SCIFs in Whitehaven and Chappaqua." The third name in the released documents is redacted
Howard Krongard, former State Department inspector general, told Fox News in email that, "If Abedin, Cooper and (Redacted) are correct, I do not know how you can have personally-owned non-approved desktop computers in a SCIF. That would be like inviting the outside world into your SCIF."
In addition, Abedin told the bureau "the SCIF door at the Whiteaven residence (DC) was not always locked." nor the SCIF in Chappaqa always "secured."
Cooper, who was in charge of the upgraded server installation in Chappaqua and Whitehaven, was identified as the staffer tasked to destroy Clinton's Blackberrys with a hammer.
Chief of Staff Cheryl Mills also requested an Internet-connected, stand-alone computer that she could access from her desk at the State Department. No such computer was ever set up. But what was inside her home SCIFs is under new scrutiny.
The FBI director said in July, three days after agents interviewed Clinton, the evidence showed potential violations of criminal statutes, but he did not recommend pursuing charges.
"In looking back at our investigations into mishandling or removal of classified information, we cannot find a case that would support bringing criminal charges on these facts," he said.
Catherine Herridge is an award-winning Chief Intelligence correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC) based in Washington, D.C. She covers intelligence, the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security. Herridge joined FNC in 1996 as a London-based correspondent.

DOJ reportedly granted immunity to computer expert who deleted Clinton emails

Did the FBI botch the Clinton email investigation?

The Department of Justice reportedly gave immunity to a computer expert who deleted Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s emails during its investigation into her private email server despite being ordered by Congress to keep them.
The New York Times reported Thursday that the Justice Department’s immunity deal with Paul Combetta likely means that Republican lawmakers’ calls for federal authorities to investigate his deletions will go unheard.
The top Republican on the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, had asked the Justice Department to investigate whether Clinton, her lawyers or Combetta obstructed justice when the emails were deleted in March 2015.
The FBI said when Clinton’s team called Platte River Networks – the Denver-based IT company where Combetta worked – in March 2015, Combetta said he realized he didn’t follow a December 2014 directive from Clinton’s lawyers to have the emails deleted. He then used BleachBit to delete the messages in the days after the meeting with her lawyers.
The Times, citing the FBI’s notes, reported that Combetta initially told the agency in February that he didn’t recall deleting the emails, but changed his story in May.
In February, he told federal investigators he didn’t remember seeing an order from the Benghazi investigation committee, which Cheryl Mills had sent to Platte River Networks, to keep the emails.
However, in the May interview, he said at the time he deleted the emails “he was aware of the existence of the preservation request and the fact that it meant he should not disturb Clinton’s email data” on the Platte River network.
Combetta is the second person to be given immunity in the investigation into Clinton’s private email server. IT specialist Bryan Pagliano, who was a staff member on Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign, was given immunity in exchange for answers into how he was able to setup Clinton’s “homebrew” server that was setup at her Chappaqua, N.Y. residence around the time she started working at the State Department.
The FBI described the deletions in its notes of its investigation into Clinton’s account that was released last week. Though Combetta’s name has been redacted, law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation identified the Combetta as the specialist who received immunity and deleted Clinton’s emails to The New York Times.
Brian Fallon, a Clinton campaign spokesman, told The Times that the deleted emails had already been investigated by the FBI before its decision to close the case.
“As the FBI report notes, neither Hillary Clinton nor her attorneys had knowledge of the Platte River Network employee’s actions. It appears he acted on his own and against guidance given by both Clinton’s and Platte River’s attorneys to retain all data in compliance with a congressional preservation request,” Fallon told the newspaper.
The House Oversight Committee had badgered the Justice Department to investigate whether Clinton had lied to Congress about her email account testimony given last October.
Lawmakers have also asked Platte River Networks officials and Combetta to appear at a hearing before the committee on Tuesday about how the email was setup and how exactly the messages were deleted.